Protection and Rights of Holidaymakers
Package holidays and cruises Booking a package holiday through a tour operator is probably the easiest way of arranging a holiday. The holiday agent will make all the arrangements for travel, accommodation and may also organise or book excursions and […]
Package holidays and cruises
Booking a package holiday through a tour operator is probably the easiest way of arranging a holiday. The holiday agent will make all the arrangements for travel, accommodation and may also organise or book excursions and entertainment for you if you wish. Although you may have to pay a little more for a package holiday booked through a holiday company than for a holiday that you have arranged by booking the different elements yourself, it does carry safeguards that, generally speaking, individually booked holidays do not.
Holidaymakers in this country, who take package holidays, are protected by compelling consumer legislation. Package holidays are covered by The Package Travel, Package Holiday and Package Tour Regulations 1992 and tour operators have to follow the rules that are set out in these regulations. If, as a result of their failure to meet the requirements of the regulations a consumer suffers a holiday illness or a holiday accident, then the holiday company may be held liable for any compensation claim.
The regulations clearly place the responsibility for the safety of consumers in the hands of the booking company if the booking includes a combination of at least two of the following:
Accommodation
Any transport to and from the resort or any travel that is part of the holiday
Other trips which are not linked to the transport or accommodation and make up a significant proportion of the trip
The holiday has been sold at an inclusive price
The holiday is for a period of 24 hours or more and includes an over-night stay.
Under Regulation 15 the “other party”; the organiser and other person involved in the contract, is liable to the consumer for the proper performance of obligations under the contract. This means that they are responsible for all aspects of the contract irrespective of whether they are actually performing the obligations or other suppliers are performing them. For example the accommodation may be owned and run by another party but the tour operator will be responsible for any problems that occur during the consumers stay there.
This means that, if a consumer suffers, or is involved in, an accident on holiday or has a holiday illness which can be attributed to the holiday company’s failure to meet the obligations set out in The Package Travel, Package Holiday and Package Tour Regulations 1992 the holiday company may be held liable. Therefore, if you were involved in an accident on holiday while travelling, in or around your accommodation or on an organised activity you may have a case to claim holiday accident compensation. Similarly, if you have had your holiday ruined by a holiday illness such as food poisoning as a result of poor standards of hygiene, or some other preventable illness such as norovirus or legionnaires disease this too, may enable you to make a claim for holiday accident compensation.
The holiday company may not however, be held responsible for the following:
Failures that occur that can be attributed to the consumer
Failures that can be attributed to an unconnected 3rd party
Failures which are due to unforeseeable or unusual circumstance beyond the control of the organiser
An event which the organiser could not foresee or forestall even if all due care had been taken.
N.B. The Package Travel, Package Holiday Regulations and Package Tour Regulations 1992 only apply to packages which are offered for sale in the United Kingdom.
Other types of holiday
As the holiday market evolves and use of the internet widens, so too does the way in which people arrange their holidays. Many people now choose to make their own arrangements, booking the different elements that make up their ideal holiday separately.
Unfortunately, these holidays do not provide tourists with the same consumer protection that covers package holidays and cruises. Holidaymakers who have arranged their holidays in this way and have had a holiday accident or illness on holiday require specialist legal advice with a more modern and inventive approach if they want to make a successful holiday compensation claim.
Macks
If you are unsure as to whether you are able to claim holiday accident compensation and would like the benefit of free legal advice before you decide to take any action Macks Solicitors will be pleased to help.
Macks experienced personal injury solicitors have been acting for clients who have suffered an illness on holiday or have been injured in a holiday accident and would be happy to discuss the making of a holiday accident compensation claim with you.
You are under no obligation but if, after speaking to a solicitor you decide that you would like to pursue a claim for holiday accident compensation, and would like us to represent you, we will start proceeding immediately on your behalf.